Case Studies
May 20, 2020

Linking Travel Behavior and Urban Form with Travel Energy Consumption for Kathmandu Valley, Nepal

Publication: Journal of Urban Planning and Development
Volume 146, Issue 3

Abstract

Escalating transport energy demand is one of the major issues for Kathmandu Valley, with a rapid increment in automobilization and urban sprawl. The Kathmandu Valley is the center for economic activities, where work trips have a dominant share. In this context, this paper aims to study the role of urban form on the travel energy of work trips in Kathmandu Valley, using the Energy Performance Index as an indicator. Trip data of workers were collected from a household survey, carried out in different parts of the study area, using random sampling. The correlation analysis shows that population density and public transport accessibility have little impact on travel energy, whereas increasing distance from the central business district is found to have a significant rise in travel energy. Further, mode choice and trip distance of work trips were analyzed with respect to urban form and socioeconomic factors. The paper concludes with the recommendations for urban planning policies to minimize urban transport energy demand.

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Acknowledgments

This research is supported by Sustainable Energy Education Program (SEEP) fellowship, a joint program between Institute of Engineering, Tribhuvan University and Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) and financed through the Energy and Petroleum Program (EnPe) in Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD).

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Journal of Urban Planning and Development
Volume 146Issue 3September 2020

History

Received: Apr 24, 2018
Accepted: Jan 27, 2020
Published online: May 20, 2020
Published in print: Sep 1, 2020
Discussion open until: Oct 20, 2020

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Authors

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Lecturer/Ph.D. Candidate, Institute of Engineering, Pulchowk Campus, Dept. of Architecture and Urban Planning, Tribhuvan Univ., P.O. Box 1175, Ananda Niketan, Pulchowk, Lalitpur 44700, Nepal (corresponding author). ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2124-3568. Email: [email protected]
Sudha Shrestha [email protected]
Professor, Institute of Engineering, Pulchowk Campus, Dept. of Architecture and Urban Planning, Tribhuvan Univ., P.O. Box 1175, Ananda Niketan, Pulchowk, Lalitpur 44700, Nepal. Email: [email protected]
Hans Skotte [email protected]
Professor, Faculty of Architecture and Design, Dept. of Architecture and Planning, Norwegian Univ. of Science and Technology (NTNU), N7491 Trondheim, Norway. Email: [email protected]

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